The Daily Illini: Volume 149 Issue 3 by The Daily Illini

COME TO RECRUITMENT NIGHT | SEE 2A TUESDAY September 3, 2019

THE DAILY ILLINI

Visit our website!!

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

Vol. 149 Issue 3

Evans Hall goes all-male due to ISR construction in its residence halls. “We know from Enrollment Management that more men are coming to campus, so it was really important we were able to house or have additional spaces for the men,” Hamilton said. Another reason Evans Hall specifically was chosen to go all-male was because there were no further renovations that had to be made to accommodate male residents. ISR residents are living in Wardall Hall this year, which is also expected to undergo renovations once Townsend Hall reopens in the fall of 2020. Hamilton was unable to confirm whether Evans Hall will permanently remain all-male or revert back to an all-female dorm. She said it depends on the gender breakdown for upcoming school years and of potential upcoming renovations. Alia Alicea, sophomore in ACES, lives in Busey Hall this year. She was living in Evans Hall last year when she received an email from University Housing stating she was unable to pick the same room for the next school year. She said rumors started to spread around her hall going all-male. A few months later, her residential director confirmed it was true. “I have mixed feelings about it because, in gen-

BY EUNICE ALPASAN STAFF WRITER

KENYON EDMOND THE DAILY ILLINI

The front entrance to Phoenix Botanical, which stands at 1704 S. Neil St., a marijuana dispensary located in Champaign. House Bill 1438, passed in Illinois on May 31, states anyone 21 or older can possess, purchase and use limited amounts of cannabis starting Jan. 1, 2020.

CU dispensaries plan for legal marijuana BY SAMANTHA BOYLE NEWS EDITOR

A lthough University students still will not be allowed to possess marijuana on campus come Jan. 1, 2020, two medical marijuana dispensaries located in Champaign and Urbana plan to sell recreational marijuana by the same date. House Bill 1438 passed in Illinois on May 31 and provides anyone age 21 or older can possess, purchase and use limited amounts of cannabis starting Jan. 1, 2020. The bill also calls for an expungement “of minor cannabis violations under specified circumstances.” However, according to a Massmail sent by Chancellor Robert Jones on Aug. 20, possession of marijuana will still be prohibited, as the University complies with federal law. For City of Urbana Mayor Diane Marlin, the passing of the state bill was no surprise. Once the state legalized medical usage, the adult-use cannabis side was almost inevitable, she said. “Currently with the new state law, people who are operating a medical dispensary have first opportunity to get a license for the adult-use sales,” Marlin said. For Urbana, that medical marijuana dispensary

is NuMed, located on 105 E. University Ave. Marlin said NuMed plans to sell adult-use cannabis within the same facility when Jan. 1, 2020, rolls around. NuMed dispensaries also exist in Peoria and Chicago. Keith McGinnis is responsible for managing all of these sites. Somewhere around 110 people frequent the Urbana location on a daily basis, McGinnis said. Once the law goes into effect though, it’s anticipated this number will double. “So what we will have to do is make sure that we’re able to handle at least double our current crowd, double the number of people that come in on a daily basis,” he said. In order to do this, NuMed is looking to hire up to 15 more people, open more point of sale systems and hire full-time security. “We really haven’t had any issues, crime or anything like that because of having a dispensary there, and we don’t foresee that happening in the future, either,” McGinnis said. As far as the pricing of adult-use cannabis will go, McGinnis said it’ll continue to fluctuate over time due to supply and demand. “I truly believe it’ll level off at a time because I think, from a cultivation standpoint, that it would

be able to meet the amount of supply that is needed,” he said. “It may be a little bumpy at first, but I know it will level off, and we’ll be able to expect it and know what to expect on a monthly basis.” Additiona lly, adultuse cannabis in Urbana will most likely have a 3% municipal tax on it — the highest percentage cities in Illinois could go, Marlin said. Within the first year of the legalization of recreational marijuana, Urbana expects about $5-$10 million in revenue. Across town, Champaign Mayor Deborah Feinen said in an email she did not have enough information yet to be able to comment on the recreational marijuana discussion. However, Jason Erke, chief communications officer and spokesperson for Cresco Labs, the owner of Phoenix Botanical in Champaign, said hopefully they will be ready to sell adult-use cannabis by Jan. 1, 2020. Phoeni x Bota nica l, located at 1704 S. Neil St., is another medical marijuana dispensary located in Champaign. “Because we’re an existing medical dispensary, we have first priorities to get an adult-use license to sell in January (2020),”

Erke said. “So once we get local approval and file that application and we get approved by the state, we’ll make whatever changes are necessary to be able to accommodate customers, and we’ll be ready for operation hopefully by Jan. While smoking and using cannabis in the privacy of people’s homes will be allowed, the idea of social consumption is still somewhat mysterious. Smoking cannabis can be prohibited in parks and school grounds the same way tobacco can be, Marlin said. But whether there’ll will be certain spaces designed for cannabis-use, Marlin and the city are still unsure. “I really do think we need to have a lot of education around this thing because I’m already discovering people are having a lot of misunderstandings about what this law actually allows,” Marlin said. “It’s not legal for (people) under 21. It’s not legal for people to grow cannabis on their property unless they have a medical marijuana card. You can’t just open up a shop and sell product with cannabis in it. So, (there are) a lot of misconceptions, so we gotta do some education, too.” sjboyle2@dailyillini.com

The historically allfemale halls Busey-Evans went out of tradition, with Evans Residence Hall switching to all-male for the first time this fall. The change comes with one of ISR’s residence halls, Townsend Hall, having to shut down for renovations as part of the ongoing ISR Renovation and Addition Project. The Project is entering its second year and is expected to be fully completed in August. “This year, because of Townsend Hall going off line and the record enrollment of the incoming class, we are at capacity and many of our private certified housing partners are also at capacity” said Chelsea Hamilton, senior assistant director of Communications & Marketing for University Housing. Historically, University Housing has not been full in capacity, but the Townsend Hall renovations meant there were over 600 residential spaces lost. Typically, 60% of Townsend Hall residents are male. The Occupancy Management Team, which consists of University Housing staff members, made the decision for Evans Hall to go all-male last summer. The team took into consideration campus demographics and gender capacity with-

SEE BUSEY-EVANS | 3A

MADELINE PIERCE THE DAILY ILLINI

Male students enter and exit the Evans side of Busey-Evans Halld on Friday. This is the first semester where Evans Residence Hall will be all-male.

INSIDE

UI police have confidence in gun violence response BY REBECCA WOOD CONTRIBUTING WRITER

KENYON EDMOND THE DAILY ILLINI

A University of Illinois campus police vehicle follows the Marching Illini as they march through the streets for Homecoming on Oct. 13. Craig Stone, chief of police at the University, said they have developed a reaction plan for threats of gun violence.

DAILYILLINI, DAILYILLINISPORTS

INSIDE

Police

@THEDAILYILLINI, @DI_OPINION, @DI_SPORTS |

Life

Culture

Crossword

In light of recent public mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, the campus community has called for more intervention. However, police are confident in the already existing emergency system. Chief of Police at the University Police Department Craig Stone said though they have a developed reaction plan, the department is attempting to focus on preventative measures. “We want to be able to prevent something from happening as opposed to having to respond to some type of crisis,” Stone said. “However, we are prepared to respond in any type of situation.” Created in 2009 and most recently updated in October, the Campus Violence Protection Plan focuses on prevention of gun violence using teams and committees.

THEDAILYILLINI |

Opinions

The Campus Violence Protection Plan includes a campus violence threat assessment policy and information regarding both the campus violence protection committee and the campus violence prevention teams. Tracy Parsons, community relations manager for Champaign, said more focus should be surrounding the prevention of gun violence. Parsons said an increase in gun violence in Champaign started in 2015. Since then, an organization called Champaign County Community Coalition has been working to identify and improve community conditions, particularly using a program called Fresh Start. “(Fresh Start is) a program that works with individuals who are most likely to be involved in gun violence, either as a perpetrator or a victim, to work with

@THEDAILYILLINI |

Letters

Sports

News: Cracked expands to Chicago area PAGE 3A

Sports: Illinois kicks off first football game PAGE 1B

SEE VIOLENCE | 3A THEDAILYILLINI

DAILYILLINI

Classifieds

Sudoku

THEDAILYILLINI 4B

buzz

2A Tuesday, September 3, 2019

THE DAILY ILLINI 1001 S. Wright Street Champaign, IL 61820

The Daily Illini is the independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign. The newspaper is published by the Illini Media Co. The Daily Illini does not necessarily represent, in whole or in part, the views of the University of Illinois administration, faculty or students. All Illini Media Co. and/or The Daily Illini articles, photos and graphics are the property of Illini Media and may not be reproduced or published without written permission from the publisher. First copy is free; each additional copy is 50 cents.

STAFF

Editor-in-Chief

Photo editor

Kelly Johnson editor@dailyillini.com

Mark Capapas photo@dailyillini.com

Managing editor, Reporting

Design editor

Managing editor, Online

Cassidy Brandt cbrandt3@illinimedia.com

Video editor Shana Olivero video@dailyillini.com

Asst. sports video editor

Tyler Panlilio online@dailyillini.com

Managing editor, Visuals

Alex Aguilera

Special sections editor

Kenyon Edmond visuals@dailyillini.com

Ava Traverso supplements@dailyillini.com

News editor

Asst. special sections editor

Samantha Boyle news@dailyillini.com

Natalie Stanowski

Asst. news editors

Buzz editor

YooJin Son Julie Kang

Katie Powers

Asst. buzz editors

Asst. daytime editors Kayla Brown Clare Budin Jose Zepeda

Jillian Little

Sports editor

Hannah Preston copychief@dailyillini.com

Copy chief

Meghan Rest sports@dailyillini.com

Asst. sports editors Rachel Spencer JJ Kim

Asst. sports editor of on-air Nathan Dehaan

Features editor

Asst. copy chiefs Rachel King Tina Lies

Social media director Samantha Roberson disocial@dailyillini.com

Web Developer Sandhya Sivakumar ssivak3@dailyillini.com

Therese Pokorney features@dailyillini.com

Brand Manager

Asst. features editors Jamie Linton Sidney Madden Co-Publishers Kit Donahue Melissa Pasco

Elizabeth Sayasane

Opinions editor

How to contact us

POLICE

Champaign

(217) 337-8300

Pari Apostolakos reporting@dailyillini.com

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

Lucas Oswald opinions@dailyillini.com

Asst. opinions editor Kyra Sadovi

Longform editor Sidney Madden longform@dailyillini.com

TODAY’S NIGHT SYSTEM STAFF Night editor: Ellen Barczak Copy editors: Hannah Thornton, Haley Follman, Meagan Schaffer Designers: Haemi Jung Page transmission: Hannah Preston Web manager: Eunice Alpasan

Burglary was reported in the 600 block of South Garfield Avenue around noon on Wednesday. According to the report, an unknown offender forced entry into the victim’s residency and stole electronics and currency. Theft was reported at Homewood Suites, 1417 S. Neil St., around 4 p.m. Wednesday. According to the report, the victim reported $400 stolen from his hotel room and believes a hotel employee took the money.

An arrest was made on the charges of retail theft at Macy’s, 2000 N. Neil St., around 7 p.m. Thursday. According to the report, the suspect stole an item from the store.

onto a bicycle rack. Theft was reported at Hopkins Hall, 1208 S. First St., Friday. According to the report, a University student reported his bicycle had been stolen Wednesday or Thursday overnight. The University bicycle was locked onto a Theft was reported bicycle rack and had an at the English Build- estimated worth of $50. ing, 608 S. Wright St., around 8 p.m. Wednesday. According to the Urbana report, a University stu- Burglary was reportdent reported his bicy- ed in the 100 block of cle stolen. The bicycle, North Poplar Street, with an estimated val- around 11 a.m. Thursday. ue of $1,000, was locked According to the report,

an unknown offender gained access to the victim’s residence through an unlocked window and stole several items. Theft was reported at Common Ground Food Co-opertive, 300 S. Broadway Ave., around 4 p.m. Thursday. According to the report, an unknown offender acted as if he was wiping off a sneeze directed toward the victim, taking the victim’s wallet in the process. news@dailyillini.com

News-Gazette Media to sell almost all assets BY CLARE BUDIN

General contacts Main number: Advertising: Newsroom: Production:

(217) 337-8300 (217) 337-8382 (217) 337-8345 (217) 337-8320

Newsroom

Online: If you have a question about DailyIllini.com or The Daily Illini’s social media outlets, please email our editor at online@dailyillini.com. Employment: If you would like to work for the newspaper’s editorial department, please fill out our form or email employment at dailyillini.com. Calendar: If you want to submit events for publication in print and online, visit dailyillini.com. Letters to the editor: Letters are limited to 300 words. Contributions must include the author’s name, address and phone number. University students must include their year in school and college. The Daily Illini reserves the right to edit or reject any contributions. Email opinions@dailyillini.com with the subject “Letter to the Editor.”

Advertising

ASSISTANT DAYTIME NEWS EDITOR

Along with filing for chapter 11 bankruptcy and notifying employees of potential layoffs starting this October, NewsGazette Media will be sold to the family-owned Champaign Multimedia Group LLC, an affiliated company of Community Media Group, according to an article by The News-Gazette. News-Gazette Media CEO John Reed announced in a meeting with News-Gazette staff Friday the company had reached an agreement to sell substantially all of its assets to CMG, which owns and operates newspapers in several midwestern states such as Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, New York and Pennsylvania. Weekly newspapers, free distribution shoppers, websites, along with WDWS, WHMS and WKIO are all part of the acquisition. “Community Media Group shares our values and represents everything we had hoped to find in the next steward of our newspapers and radio stations,” Reed said in a statement to The News-Gazette. “They

The Daily Illini is located in the basement of the University YMCA at 1001 S. Wright St., Champaign, IL 61820. Our office hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday - Friday.

Placing an ad: If you would like to place an ad, please contact our advertising department. (217) 337-8382 or e-mail advertise@illinimedia.com.

The Daily Illini is online everywhere you are.

Website dailyillini.com

The Daily Illini App Play Store, App Store

Facebook The Daily Illini The Daily Illini Sports

Twitter @TheDailyIllini @DI_Sports MARK CAPAPAS THE DAILY ILLINI

Instagram

The News-Gazette office is located at 15 E. Main St. in downtown Champaign. CEO John Reed announced Friday the company reached an agreement to sell a large portion of assets to Champaign Multimedia Group LLC.

have a strong commitment to quality products, and they share our vision of a multimedia future where print, radio and digital media outlets continue to complement one another.” The sale is expected to close in November, and CMG has noted it is

developing plans for rehiring some former NewsGazette employees following the sale. “The ultimate decision to seek a buyer was extremely difficult on many levels,” Reed said. “In the end, I have absolute confidence in our

selection of Community Media Group and am convinced that both the decision to sell and the selected buyer represent the best possible outcome for our employees, readers and listeners.” claredb2@dailyillini.com

@TheDailyIllini

Snapchat TheDailyIllini

Corrections When we make a mistake, we will correct it in this place. We strive for accuracy, so if you see an error in the paper, please contact Editor-inChief Kelly Johnson at (217)-337-8365.

WRITE. DESIGN. BROADCAST. SELL. CREATE. MANAGE. INSPIRE.

Are you interested in getting valuable experience in a fun and professional setting?

Come to one of Illini Media’s

FALL 2019 RECRUITMENT NIGHTS Tuesday, Sept. 3 & Wednesday, Sept. 4 at 7pm • Greg Hall, Rm 112 rd

Daily Illini Independent student newspaper

Buzz

Online entertainment magazine

Illio Yearbook at the University of Illinois

Technograph Quarterly engineering magazine

WPGU-FM 107.1 Commercial radio station

TUESDAY

September 3, 2019 The Daily Illini DailyIllini.com

NEWS

First Native American poet laureate inspires diversity in UI classes BY CLARE BUDIN ASSISTANT DAYTIME NEWS EDITOR

Former American Indian studies professor and celebrated poet Joy Harjo will take up her duties as U.S. poet laureate for 2019-2020. Harjo is the first Native American to serve in the position of U.S. poet laureate as a member of the Muskogee Creek Nation, located in her home state of Oklahoma. On Sept. 19, 2020, Harjo will open the Library of Congress’ annual literary season with a reading of her work in the Library’s Coolidge Auditorium. “My students love reading Joy Harjo’s poems,” said Robert Dale Parker, professor in LAS, in an email. “They love the combination of lyricism and commitment to justice, and they also love the way she combines poetry and history.” According to the Academy of American Poets, U.S. poet laureates, a position the Library of Congress established in 1936, often engage in outreach programs and community projects that encourage greater national creativity and engagement with literature. Parker said Harjo’s appointment reflects both the diversity America needs as well as the existing diverse voices in the field that deserve recognition. “The study of literature today expands in many fascinating directions, and all of us who have worked with Joy and taught her writing know that she would be thrilled to see her poems and her new appointment as the poet laureate of the United States, inspiring Native (American) students and others to read

and reread Native (American poets) and other poets, to face our complicated pasts and to build a more inclusive future,” Parker said. Kirsten Peterson, senior in LAS, said she and many other students are desperate to seek courses and literature that offer more diversity. “When teachers ask, ‘What made you want to take these courses?’ the general student response is, ‘All we ever read is white middle-aged wealthy men, and I finally wanted to hear from someone else,’” Peterson said. “This generation of students is definitely getting tired of the same voices over and over again, and we’re looking for diversity in literature moving forward in our studies of English.” Peterson said the first step students can take to advocate for diversity is to call it out when they see a lack of it in the classroom or coursework. “I’m currently in an early American literature course, and one of the questions that we asked yesterday was, ‘There doesn’t seem to be a lot of indigenous works in the syllabus for this semester. Is there a reason why?’ and we weren’t really given a reason,” Peterson said. “We’re conscious of that being lacking in some of our curriculum, particularly when we’re looking at American literature.” Peterson said a lack of diverse perspectives in writing isn’t just apparent in the chosen course materials themselves, but also in how discussions surrounding the materials are con-

PHOTO COURTESY OF SHAWN MILLER

Poet Laureate of the United States Joy Harjo is pictured on June 6. Harjo is the first Native American to serve as poet laureate and is a member of the Muscogee Creek Nation.

structed in class. “I’ve had a class where we read ‘Pride and Prejudice’ and didn’t talk about any feminist components of it, only social aspects that naturally should overlap,” Peterson said. “I ended up writing a paper in a really angry format, calling out every single feminist interpretation you could have about the novel.” Peterson said students communicating their frustrations in their own works is a great way to strongly

advocate for more diversity and dialogue in their fields. “Calling out the lack of focus on diversity and pointing out the racism in some pieces of literature in your own writing gives you an ability to communicate your frustration and explore these issues more on your own,” Peterson said. “Then, if you’re looking to become an English professor or just to have a better perspective when entering into these works, you already have a strong

FROM 1A

BUSEY-EVANS

MADELINE PIERCE THE DAILY ILLINI

Busey-Evans Residence Halls are shown on Friday. When ISR construction concludes, it is uncertain whether or not Evans Hall will continue to house only male students.

FROM 1A

VIOLENCE

them and encourage them to change their ways,” Parsons said. Following the mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton, the FBI has received a 70% increase in tips from the public. This is how people should react, Stone said. “We want people to call us if they see something that doesn’t look right, suspicious activity or someone who used to be engaging with friends and classes, but now they’re withdrawn, not participating and isolated,” Stone said. The police force has a campus prevention team, which identifies community members who may be in need of resources and intervention. UIPD Lt. Joe McCollough said about one-third of tips coming to these teams are from the police force, while others are from areas like McKinley and students or faculty. Representatives from areas such as McKinley

Health Center, the Dean of Students and human resources sit as members of these teams and provide their viewpoints, occasionally volunteering to take preventative measures. “The great thing about sitting on these teams is that with so many representatives at the table, it doesn’t have to be a counselor reaching out to the person. McCollough said. It doesn’t have to be a police officer knocking on their door,” Rather, he said members from the Dean of Students, faculty and staff are able to meet with the individual to discuss any possible issue and provide resources available to them at the University. Nikki Burdyn, senior in LAS, said there are instances where she questions her safety on campus, especially in light of recent public mass shootings. “I’ll be sitting in my lecture sometimes and think, ‘Oh, does this lecture have two exits?’ Or like when I’m sitting at the UGL, I think,

eral, the rooms over in (Evans) are bigger than a lot of the other dorms,” Alicea said. “I had a corner room and it was a lot bigger, so I really enjoyed staying in that room, and I wanted to stay in that room again, so I was upset.” “The fourth f loor of Evans is, for the most part, all single rooms she said. A lot of us were bummed because a lot of us can’t get singles anymore.” Busey-Evans resident advisers were unable to comment, because R As are not able to handle press and communications directly related to University Housing. Sam Nelson freshman in FAA, is living in Evans Hall. He said living in Evans Hall has been “really nice.” He lives with his roommate in a double.

“There’s some significant education needed on how to make an assessment that’s not based on stereotypes or hate or misconception.” TRACY PARSONS CHAMPAIGN COMMUNITY RELATIONS MANAGER

‘Oh, this would be a perfect location for something horrible to happen,’” Burdyn said. Since Burdyn’s freshman year, she said she noticed more of her professors remind students of the “Run, Fight, Hide” plan, should a gunman open fire. But Burdyn said she thinks this isn’t productive enough for students. “They should be taking more time to teach us about warning signs about different behaviors people might exhibit if (dangerous) thoughts were running through their heads,” Burdyn said. Faculty members at the University are not required to warn or inform students on gun safety and preven-

tion. It can only be encouraged by the police force, said Patrick Wade, communications director for the University’s Division of Public Safety. Burdyn said one of her teachers informed students that the classroom was recently remodeled, now having the ability to lock from the inside, something she thinks should be a standard to each classroom. As a community, Parsons said everyone needs to recognize the importance of communication and sharing information. “There’s some significant education needed on how to make an assessment that’s not based on stereotypes or hate or misconception,” Parsons said.

ground to build on and teach to other students.” Parker said Harjo’s already existing impact on readers and artists from all backgrounds will only grow with her new position. “There is a huge surge of Native American poetry right now — as you can see from a book like Heid Erdrich’s ‘New Poets of Native Nations’ — and so many Native (American) poets have long looked to Harjo for inspiration,” Parker said. “Now that she

is the poet laureate of the whole United States, we can hope that many more readers will find her poems and will also find the poems of many other Native poets and of many poets from many histories that too many readers have overlooked before.” Joy Harjo was unavailable for comment at time of publication.

“It’s a good size,” Nelson said. “I have space for everything. It’s overall a good place, it’s not huge, obviously, but it’s more than enough for what I need.” Female residents who lived in Evans Hall were given priority as one of the first groups to choose their housing for the following school year. Like Alicea, many of these residents chose to live in Busey — the connecting hall that remains all-female. Alicea said she and other female residents shared some concerns about the change to Busey-Evans no longer being all-female. “A lot of us were worried because having an all-girls dorm was really nice,” Alicea said. “You never know a female’s reason for wanting to stay in an all-girls dorm. It could be for conservative reasons, cultural reasons (or) anything that could have happened

to her before.” To address some of these concerns, Hamilton said Busey Hall also houses non-visitation residents who live on a floor together where no males are allowed at any point in time. Alicea said there was a feeling among returning female residents that Busey-Evans wasn’t going to be the same anymore. So far, however, she said it has been good, and she has only noticed a few changes. “I did notice guys are constantly in the laundry room ironing,” she said. “They also don’t know how to keep up with their socks. In the laundry room, I’ve never seen so many single socks lost. It’s like, ‘How do you guys keep losing your socks?’”

In August, the police force, along with detectives and crime prevention officers completed Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training. “I’m confident that we have the training, equipment, skills and personnel to respond and immediately stop a threat,” Stone said. Sponsored by a federal grant from Texas A&M University and the FBI, Stone said officers spent two days responding to emergency scenarios both independently and in teams, including in the classroom. “We hear shots, we’re going in” Stone said. “We’re going to find and stop the threat. That’s what we’re supposed to do. We’re not going to wait.” Stone explained training was based upon research that looked at previous mass shootings in the U.S., giving officers similar scenarios and providing instruction as to the best way to respond. University police officers are instructed to be on the scene within three minutes. In Dayton, Ohio, the

shooter shot 26 people in just 30 seconds, despite rapid response from the police. Wade said nothing has changed in the forces active shooter response plan following recent mass shootings because they have recognized this reality since the Columbine school shooting in 1999. However, he said the recent shootings remind the officers of the importance of their procedures. “Our University, as a whole, has been preparing for many, many years,” Wade said. “All these (procedures) are in place because of the history.” Should there be an active shooter in the area, campus police use Illini Alert to send updates and instructions to students in emergency situations. “We cover this front to back,” McCollough said. “We prepare every day and train every day for the worst, hope that does not happen and do everything in the meantime to put preventative processes out there.”

claredb2@dailyillini.com

alpasan2@dailyillini.com

rnwood2@dailyillini.com

TUESDAY

September 3, 2019 The Daily Illini DailyIllini.com

LIFE & CULTURE

CASSIDY BRANDT THE DAILY ILLINI

Political internships give clarity for careers BY ELIZABETH SAYASANE ASSISTANT FEATURES EDITOR

Several students at the University take summers as an opportunity to work in politics. They intern within several facets of thepolitical system, including at district offices, on campaigns, with nonprofits and for political organizations. Luke Headley, a University alumnus, changed the course of his career in the summer of 2018: He interned in the district office of Congresswoman Cheri Bustos. Headley still works in her office but now as a full-time employee.

In addition to interning at Bustos’s district office, Headley also worked on Daniel Biss’ primary campaign for governor in 2018 while he was still in school. “These political internships are great for understanding the foundation of campaigns and the district offices,” Headley said. “It really helps to understand the structure of the campaign, understanding who’s in charge of what.” At Bustos’ office, he answered phones, took messages and participated in work he said prepared him for the job he has now.

PHOTO COURTESY OF PUBLIC DOMAIN

Illinois Representative Cheri Bustos poses for a photo. Internships working for representatives like Bustos provide many career advancement opportunities for students.

During Biss’ campaign, he helped with phone banking, canvassed the community and set up events. Particularly during his time working for the campaign, Headley found his age helped him do his job. “It’s a lot easier for a student to go talk to someone from our generation and convey to them the importance of these elections than it might be for someone much older,” Headley said. Michelle Lee, who studied graphic design at the University for her freshman year before returning to California, agrees the younger generations need to increase their political participation. She encourages young people to acknowledge the impact politics has on their lives. “Some people may think it doesn’t affect us as much as it does,” she said. “If we don’t do our part in deciding how our own future looks, none of us have the right to complain about whatever mess or whatever disaster occurs.” Lee started doing her part to get involved by interning for Assemblywoman Young Kim of California in the summer of 2016. She worked for part of the summer at the campaign office and the other part at the district office. Lee’s responsibilities were typically making phone calls to members of the district asking them about their voting choices, filing emails and researching articles regarding the

campaign. One significant factor in her political internship experience, Lee said, is she worked in an office with a different political ideology than her own. This gave her the opportunity to try and understand what the other side of politics is thinking. “I wasn’t aware the sheer number of people who were so vastly different from the people I usually surround myself with,” Lee said. One place people of all political viewpoints gather is in Washington, D.C. Students at the University have the chance to go experience the political world in D.C. with to the Illinois in Washington program. This program is directed

Champaign-Urbana. Students have to find their own internships in any discipline they choose. They also have to take classes and participate in the “Washington Experience” course, which takes them around places like the White House, Library of Congress, art museums and more. “Pretty much (all) alumni will tell you that it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for them and it made a pretty profound impact in the trajectory of their career,” Mayer said. Some recent alums of the program have already found positions continuing their work in politics. One works in Gov. J.B. Pritz-

“If we don’t do our part in deciding how our own future looks like, none of us have the right to complain about whatever mess or whatever disaster occurs.” MICHELLE LEE FORMER INTERN FOR YOUNG KIM

by Andrea Mayer, a member of the political science faculty based in D.C. This program, according to Mayer, is a remote campus in D.C. where students take courses from University faculty and intern for an internship of their choice. They have spring, summer and fall semesters and follow the same general requirements as students on campus in

ker’s D.C. office. Another one is a law student who has a fellowship through the Illinois in Washington board of advisers. These students are also not just coming from political science backgrounds. Participants come from a wide range of majors: economics, ACES, communications, public health and sociology. What unites all these students is their eis3@dailyillini.com

50% OFF YOUR CAR WASH WITH AN OIL CHANGE Corner of W. Bradley & County Fair, Champaign, (Near Parkland College)

217.352.9200

www.triple-tcarwashandlube.com

enthusiasm for exploring career possibilities and enjoying the excitement of being part of the political process in D.C. Mayer encourages students to get involved wherever they are, whether that is in Washington, D.C. or at home in their local governments. She said it is important to get students involved through these internships, particularly because of the networking opportunities. “This allows students to get their foot in the door in careers that really interest them and gives them access to careers and experiences that they might not otherwise have,” Mayer said. That foot in the door was critical for Headley to get the job he has now. Because he made and maintained strong connections with his two bosses last summer, he was offered a full-time position. His advice to students going into politics is to network with the people involved in the political process already and work hard. “It’s really important that when you’re in your internship, you’re giving 100% and making those important connections,” Headley said. “They saw what my work ethic was like through my internship and then went forward to recommend me for a job in their own office because they liked how hard I worked.”

ALL NEW

Mon-Fri: 8-5:30 Sat: 8-5 Sun: Closed

Full Service Car Wash • 3-Bay Quick Lube Center • Full Service Detail Center • Tire Rotations

buzz calendar Want to submit an event?

DAILY ILLINI APP

NEWS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS • Stay up-to-date on all things Illini • Get breaking news immediately • News, sports, features, opinions ALL NEW! Exclusive offers only available in the App

Email calendar@readbuzz.com Apple and the Apple logo and iPhone are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries and regions. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google LLC.

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

Tuesday, September 3, 2019

Cracked goes from food truck to Chicago-area chain BY ERICA FINKE STAFF WRITER

Many know the Green Street restaurant Cracked: The Egg Came First started in a small food truck run by owner and University alumnus Daniel Krause. The business has recently announced its expansion to the Wicker Park neighborhood in Chicago. While this expansion has been a huge step for Cracked, the road to food truck success has been littered with potholes, and the drive has been anything but easy. Krause came up with the idea for Cracked as a 2010 intern for Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, a restaurant company in Chicago. The idea won Krause first place in Lettuce Entertain You’s Concept Competition. Krause said he dreamed Cracked would be a fleet of 100 food trucks serving buildyour-own omelets. The menu switched to breakfast sandwiches after it was decided that omelets wouldn’t be the most practical meal on the customers’ way to class or work. Krause started serving up potential breakfast sandwiches to his Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity brothers during spring 2012. “Every weekend, me and Jeremy would wake up and cook for all the guys in our senior house, and so we created a lot of really terrible stuff,” Krause said. “I remember my friend Nicky said to me while we were making some sand-

wiches, he was like, ‘Have you ever had cream cheese on a breakfast sandwich?’ And I was like, ‘No, that sounds heinous,’” Krause said. They tried it, and Krause was amazed. This discovery lead to Cracked’s first breakfast sandwich, the Morning Bender, which remains one of its most popular sandwiches today. Krause and business partner Jeremy Mandell based the entire menu around the Morning Bender, but reluctantly added a breakfast burrito, the Hungry Chief, after numerous requests. During the spring semester before their graduation in 2012, Krause and Mandell started putting all of their ideas together and purchased a food truck. They grew their business enough to the point of needing two trucks in 2014. Even though they were on their way to their dream of 100 food trucks, two was proving to be difficult enough to break through a plateau. “We got into this warehouse lease for five years that was too big for the operation. And we had two trucks that (were) not pulling in nearly enough money to basically cover the overhead that we just expanded into,” Krause said, adding how it got so hot in the summer that the temperatures were “murderous,” and there wasn’t nearly enough ventilation in the trucks. The business began to flourish once Cracked moved

AKI AKHAURI THE DAILY ILLINI

The exterior of Cracked on Green Street on Saturday is pictured above. The business, founded by University alumnus Daniel Krause, announced plans to expand to Chicago.

into its storefront on Green Street during August 2017. “I was worried because people think the restaurant industry game is so much harder than the food truck game,” Krause said. “People try to do this all the time, and food truck owners don’t know what they’re getting into.” “My coming to realization after all of it was that this was so much easier than running a food truck in every single

AKI AKHAURI THE DAILY ILLINI

Customers wait in line to order at the counter of Cracked: The Egg Came First on Saturday. The owner credits Champaign-Urbana and the University with much of the business’ success.

way.” The storefront was more reliable for Krause; walking in and being able to use electricity and having access to a propane line for the deep fryers were amenities they couldn’t always rely on in the food trucks. As Cracked became busier, Krause was able to hire Lewis Nisbet, the co-owner and general manager for Cracked in Champaign, in August 2018. Cracked is Nisbet’s debut in the restaurant industry, but he has used his background in business to help the company grow, adding how he hopes to beat last year’s sales record by filling in the “dead hours.” “We’ve got the drunk people at midnight, but in the morning, it’s the professors and it’s young professionals,and it’s construction workers who are doing all of these crazy construction processes on campus, and I think just filling in the hours that we’re not supposed to be busy,” Nisbet said. Nisbet also said the general attitude in the restaurant has greatly improved since he started in Champaign. “The environment and the atmosphere and the nonfriendliness toward customers and everything else and I just said, ‘I would rather work this shift by myself than have these two people in the build-

ing,” Nisbet said. “And that was one of the things that I took upon myself because I cared so much about the company,” Nisbet said. “I will do this whole shift by myself just because I care enough to make everyone that walks in there happy, and I think you’ve got to bring the same sort of people on board.” One of those people included Cracked night shift manager Demarlo Hatchett. Hatchett was drawn to Cracked as an opportunity to pursue his love of cooking when he moved to the Champaign area in August 2018. “I never heard about it, but I heard about it when I was at Pizza Hut, and they were talking about a breakfast place, and they said there’s a store called Cracked, and they serve really good food with tater tots, breakfast sandwiches and breakfast burritos,” Hatchett said. “Grilled cheeses and soup? I said, ‘Wow!’ I thought they must be doing something big, so I had to bring myself down there and see what they were all about.” Hatchett said he enjoys his job and the customers that come in. He’s inspired by bosses Nisbet and Krause and is optimistic about the future of Cracked. “Not one time have I ever had a problem with any one

of my coworkers,” Hatchett said. “Everybody is really mellow, and everyone gets along with the customers, and I think that’s really what makes the customers want to come back more.” As for the future of Cracked, Krause is hoping for a soft opening of the Chicago Cracked in three weeks and a hard opening the first week of October. While it was a “dream” to bring Cracked to Chicago, Krause still hopes to expand to his hometown of Evanston. From there, Chicago neighborhoods Pilsen, Humboldt Park and the Loop are potential candidates as well as Madison, Wisconsin, and New Lafayette, Indiana. Even though the business hopes to grow, the owners will never forget their roots in Champaign. “When you spend $50,000, are you going to see a return on your investment? And that was the best money ever spent,” Krause said. “Even if the Champaign restaurant didn’t bring in the type of return I’d want, it solidified what the restaurant is and needs to be.” “Champaign is fabulous. We wouldn’t be where we are today without Champaign-Urbana and U of I projecting us to our success.” elfinke2@dailyillini.com

NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD 1

ACROSS

FALL 2019

9/4 9/19 10/5

JUNKYARD SAMURAI CHRIS LAKE DIRT MONKEY

10/11

BORGORE

10/19

MUNGION

10/23

CHERUB

11/5

LOUD LUXURY

GO TO WPGU.COM FOR MORE INFO!

1 What a coin may go in 5 ___ & Allies (classic board game) 9 Lies lazily in the sun 14 Stun with a gun 15 Brad of “Fight Club” 16 Someone’s in the kitchen with her, in an old song 17 Wreck 18 Petty set of procedures 20 Woman who’s bid good night in an old song 22 “___, old chap!” 23 “With this ring, I thee ___” 24 Local officials in dioceses 28 Seats in many bars 29 Car 32 Car with a meter 35 Sites of biceps and triceps 36 More cunning 38 & 40 Money required to open a business … or a hint to 18-, 24-, 47- and 57-Across 41 Permeates 42 Feature of many an old car 43 Cunning 44 Some beans 45 “Here’s how experts handle this” 47 Longest-serving Independent member of Congress in U.S. history 53 Vaccine target 55 Greeting in Guatemala 56 Generate by dubious means 57 Part of a Juliet soliloquy 61 Crème ___ crème 62 Juiced (up) 63 Noted terrier in a 1939 film

29 36

28 32

19 22

PUZZLE BY CHRISTINA IVERSON

64 Scott of an 1857 Supreme Court case 65 Inventor with a coil named after him 66 Lead-in to chat or dragon 67 Time long past

DOWN

1 Unit of bacon 2 Actress Linney of “The Truman Show” 3 Common basketweaving material 4 Something you’ll have to go to court for? 5 Financing letters 6 Midnight, on a grandfather clock 7 Edie Sedgwick and Kendall Jenner, for two 8 Condition of inactivity 9 They’re almost always shared by twins, informally

10 Televise 11 Winter play outfits 12 Leafy vegetable that can be green or purple 13 Place to store a lawn mower 19 Fannie ___ 21 Locale for a manor 25 Falcon-headed Egyptian god 26 Circumstance’s partner 27 Car with a meter 30 Blue-green shade 31 Alternative to Charles de Gaulle 32 Some CBS police dramas 33 Prefix with sphere 34 Obvious signs of pregnancy 36 Fruity soda brand 37 Selecting, with “for” 39 Ploy 40 Tops of corp. ladders

42 “That’ll never happen!” 45 Ones doing loops and barrel rolls 46 Onetime stage name of Sean Combs 48 “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” spinoff 49 ___’easter 50 Month after diciembre 51 Side of many a protractor 52 Garden tool 53 ___ row (some blocks in a college town) 54 Togolese city on the Gulf of Guinea 58 Fish that can be electric 59 Second letter after epsilon 60 “Alley ___!” 59 Neighbor of Turkey 60 Popular streaming device

The crossword solution is in the Classified section.

OPINIONS

TUESDAY

September 3, 2019 The Daily Illini DailyIllini.com

Customer service workers deserve kindness

MARK CAPAPAS THE DAILY ILLINI

Starbucks in the Illini Union experiences a rush hour around 1 p.m. on Tuesday. Columnist Alice explains how rush hours like this can cause stress for customer service workers.

ALICE LEE COLUMNIST

eople always say “seeing is believing” to sum up the idea that you don’t really know what it’s like for someone until you step into their shoes. It’s appropriate to extend this line of thinking to the field of customer service. Until you’ve worked in customer service yourself, it’s all too easy to overlook how stressful and grueling

it can actually be. I worked as a barista for a major coffee chain this summer, and while the experience itself was enjoyable — especially the free drink perk — dealing with rude and cranky customers was not. From handling situations where a customer wanted their drink remade four times to people not believing we don’t sell smoothies, I’ve seen firsthand how intense customer service jobs can be when in the past I’ve overlooked them. Apart from learning com-

munication skills when talking to customers and ensuring they receive the best care possible, customer service workers also have to be able to think quickly and solve any problems that arise randomly throughout a shift. Some customers will have very specific requests, and it may be difficult to decipher what they actually want, but it’s important to remember the workers are doing their best to accommodate the customer, and no one should cry over spilled coffee. One of the main things I

Be a dumpster for your friends

realized working as a barista is there are many interruptions beyond the employee’s control that disrupt the flow of drink-making, so I understand now why drinks sometimes take a while to come out. Knowing what it’s like to be slammed with orders makes you think twice before getting angry and impatient with the baristas behind the counter. You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who doesn’t have horror stories about their work, but nothing makes you appreciate the work they actually do like

living it yourself. Whether it’s working customer service in the form of a coffee shop, restaurant or retail, it motivates you to want to be a better customer because now you know what it’s like on the flip side. Anyone who’s worked in customer service before understands what it’s like to be snapped at or yelled at and are less likely to do it themselves because they don’t want to cause workers the stress and anxiety they’ve experienced. So in times of impatience as a customer, it’s beneficial to

relate to the people working behind the counter and realize being compassionate helps most of all. The golden rule of “treat others how you would want to be treated” is a universal philosophy and applies heavily in the world of customer service. Of all the lessons life teaches us, kindness should outweigh them all, and customer service workers are a group of people who would benefit greatly from a bit more of it. Alice is a sophomore in LAS. alicewl2@dailyillini.com

Swift shows she’s still on top with new album NOAH NELSON COLUMNIST

MARK CAPAPAS THE DAILY ILLINI

Three students rest on the Main Quad on Tuesday. Opinions editor Lucas describes the importance of listening to and accepting your friends. LUCAS OSWALD OPINIONS EDITOR

ood friends are hard to find — old words, yet true words. In today’s era of digital companionship, social media platforms like Facebook promote the notion one can be a friend from anywhere. People worlds away can connect with the simple biometric unlocking of a smartphone. Access to such instantaneous communication is altering the definition of friendship. Now, “friends” are the cordiform icons appearing beneath your posts, the pings of direct messages and the semi-creative usernames commenting on your pages. Our relationships barely extend past our friends’ cellphones; we designed all this technology, so we could be closer from farther away. But is that what a “good friend” is? Just another profile picture on your running list of followers? I hate to be the guy who answers his own rhetorical

questions, but no. That is not what a good friend is, and I know because I am fortunate enough to have a few. Good friends are not exclusively available through technology nor are they so selfabsorbed they forget to ask about you. No. Good friends are dumpsters. (Yes, you read that correctly.) They are the dumpsters into which you can dump your problems and your feelings and your secrets. They also never fill up and rarely smell, which already gives them two legs up over literal waste receptacles. They are dependable, always ready for you to toss more of your garbage into them. They are reliable, easy to locate again once found and clearly marked. They’ve seen you at your worst and still stand in unjudging silence as you burden them with your filth. They understand life is messy; they get the chaos and the clutter, and they know you. But yeah, dumpsters are hard to find. They elude us

largely because we forget our friends are also people with their own trash to deal with. Too many of us aren’t the dumpsters our friends need. On the unusual occasions we surface from our screens, it’s only for superficial gossip about celebrity romances or to guffaw over the next Vine compilation. Seldom do we unplug to listen to our friends, to be with them in the moment, to let them dump whatever they need to dump. So become the dumpster your friends need. Lift your eyes from your smartphone, and listen to what they tell you. Welcome their garbage with open arms, let them unload on you and allow them the freedom to throw anything at you, no matter how revolting and ugly. Take it all in silence, absorb it, offer advice if necessary and then pack it away safely in the landfill of time. Be that person who friends tell, “Gosh, buddy, you were hard to find.” Lucas is a senior in LAS. loswald2@dailyillini.com

hirteen years ago, Taylor Swift introduced herself to the world as a young girl who just wanted her songs on country radio. Now, she’s a successful pop star playing sold-out stadiums with no signs of slowing down. Her loyal fans, known as “Swifties,” and music fans around the globe have now entered a new era in the 29-year-old singer’s career. With the Aug. 23 release of her highly anticipated seventh studio album “Lover,” Swift has not only grown as an artist but as a leader in the music industry. Back in April, Swift released the album’s lead single titled “ME!” featuring Brendon Urie of Panic! at the Disco. The song came along with a music video showing a happy Swift singing about expressing who you are and not worrying about what anyone else thinks of you. Her last era, “Reputation,” included multiple images of snakes and the infamous lyric in “Look What You Made Me Do,” where she says, “The old Taylor can’t come to the phone right now, because she’s dead.” Swift showed a never before seen gloomy side of herself. On this new album, Swift has broken out of that dark shell and stepped into the light again. With a n excellent pop vibe, “Lover” is the album that both Swifties and music fans needed. With a mix of upbeat

PHOTO COURTESY OF JANA ZILLS

Taylor Swift performed her Red Tour in St. Louis, Missouri, in March 2013. She recently released her summer album “Lover.”

songs like “Paper Rings,” which touches on a new love obsession and slower tunes like “Cornelia Street,” about an unknown deep life experience, Swift proves once again her songwriting ability has only grown stronger. What makes the album pure Swift is the title track, a romantic ballad that tops almost every other love song (and there have been plenty) Swift has written in the past, with the exception of “Ours,” “Love Story” and many other fan favorites. While Swift is still experiencing love and relationships, her songs about those concepts will only grow better from here. With the same autobiographical style of writing

as her previous records, Swift shows the world with “Lover” she’s not afraid of making music about her personal life experiences, an aspect of her career that has made her so relatable to fans. With outstanding lyrics, smooth melodies and various stories about Swift’s life, “Lover” will no doubt be left on repeat for a long time. Whether you like or dislike her, Swift is an American icon and proves that accolade with this new album. Maybe someday she will return to her frizzy hair and sparkly guitar country days, but for now, Swifties couldn’t ask for anything more. Noah is a sophomore in LAS. noahen2@dailyillini.com

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS | opinions@dailyillini.com with the subject “Letter to the Editor.” The Daily Illini reserves the right to edit for length, libel, grammar and spelling errors, and Daily Illini style or to reject any contributions. Letters must be limited to 300 words. Contributions must be typed and include the author’s name, address and phone number. University students must include their year in school and college.

TUESDAY

September 3, 2019 The Daily Illini DailyIllini.com

SPORTS

FOOTBALL

JONATHAN BONAGURO THE DAILY ILLINI

Illinois tight end Daniel Barker (87) celebrates with teammates Griffin Palmer (81), Vederian Lowe (79), and Alex Palczewski (63) after scoring a touchdown on Saturday against Akron. The Illini won 42-3.

Illinois defeats Akron in home season opener BY JARED FARMER STAFF WRITER

Illinois football steamrolled its way through the Akron Zips in its seasonal debut at Memorial Stadium by a score of 42-3. “We all worked to get to the first game to see where we are … this is a good start,” said head coach Lovie Smith. “We’ll need to continue to raise our level of play, but this is a good start.” Illinois’ offense wasted no time getting into the scoring column against

Akron. Senior running back Reggie Corbin had 35 rush yards and five carries as he scored the first touchdown of the morning, with a field goal conversion from kicker James McCourt putting the Illini up 7-0 within the first five minutes of the opening quarter. The Zips responded by immediately advancing down the field, getting as far as the Illini’s 20-yard line before scoring on a field goal attempt by kicker Jerry Fitschen to cut the lead 7-3.

Transfer quarterback Brandon Peters looked comfortable in the following possession for the Illini, with back-to-back 22and 12-yard completions to advance the ball back into the Zips’ end zone. The possession was capped off by a 10-yard carry from junior RB Ra’Von Bonner to put the Illini up 14-3. A fumble by Akron quarterback Kato Nelson was recovered by junior linebacker Jake Hansen to put the Illini back on the Zips’ 24-yard line. Peters avoided

a sack on a blitz attempt and found junior wide receiver Ricky Smalling to put the Illini in the Zips’ endzone to close off the quarter. Illinois opened the second with a 10-yard completion pass from Peters to junior transfer WR Trevon Sidney, extending the lead to 21-3. After a string of possessions hovering around the Zips’ 40-yard line, Hansen forced another turnover, this time with an interception at the Zips’ 38 for another Illini advance. Illinois put themselves

in position to score another field goal at Akron’s 17-yard line, but the kick was missed by junior kicker James McCourt. A 16-yard punt return by Jerry Fitschen put the Illini back on the 20-yard line, which allowed Peters to carry all the way to the endzone for another Illini touchdown with just over two minutes remaining. In the remaining two minutes, the Illini defense harassed the Zips as they failed to advance past their own 40-yard line, closing

out the half up 28-3. Akron started off the second half with the ball in its hands, but the suffocating defense forced a quick turnover once again. Peters found WR Josh Imatorbhebhe for a 22-yard completion, followed shortly after by a 16-yard rush from Sidney. Illinois scored its fifth touchdown of the game with an effortless 9-yard completion to senior tight end Justice Williams. “I need to get away from calling ourselves a running team because we want to SEE OPENER | 3B

CROSS COUNTRY

VOLLEYBALL

Illinois outplays Tennessee, starts fall campaign at 2-0 BY BRENDYN JONES STAFF WRITER

JONATHAN BONAGURO THE DAILY ILLINI

The women’s cross country team kicks off its fall campaign on Friday. Both the women’s and men’s teams dominated the Illini Open.

Loud, Craddock win Illini Open BY RACHEL SPENCER ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

Illinois men’s and women’s cross country started their fall campaigns with two individual wins at the Illini Open on Aug. 30. Redshirt sophomore Irwin Loud and junior Rebecca Craddock set the pace for the Illini, winning the men’s 8K and women’s 5K, respectively. Craddock ’s 16:58.1 5K time made her finish the eighth fastest in program history, and she was joined in the top five at the meet by freshman Emma Wilson and sophomores Madison Marasco and Emma Milburn. Wilson stayed close on Craddock’s heels for a second-place finish in her program debut with a time of 17:06.2. Junior

Alison McGrath rounded out the Illini’s score with an eighth-place finish, giving the program a total score of 19. For perspective, the next best finish by a program on Friday was Purdue, with a score of 53. The other Big Ten Conference program that competed was Northwestern, which walked away with third place and a score of 67. Rounding out the competition for the women’s 5K was DePaul with a score of 117. The Illini men’s program competed against DePaul and Purdue, finishing in second with a team score of 33. Loud finished with a time of 25:22.3 — a finish that was only four seconds ahead of classmate Logan Hall,

who placed second. Overall, the men’s cross country team walked away with four Illini in the top 10; sophomore Colin Yandel and redshirt senior Zach Dale matched pace for ninth and 10th place finishes. Head coach Sarah Haveman described the men’s finish as “a solid day,” per fightingillini.com. Both programs will focus their energy the next few weeks on preparing for the John McNichols Invite, where they will be hosted by Indiana State. The invite will take place on Saturday, Sept. 21 with the men’s race starting at 8 a.m. and women’s at 8:45 a.m. @rachelspenc rachels4@dailyillini.com

The No. 6-ranked Illinois volleyball team opened up its season with an intense comefrom-behind win against No. 19-ranked Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee, Friday night. The Illini were down two sets to zero against the Volunteers and had even lost their lead late in the third set. However, the team was able to rally in the last three sets behind the double-double performance of senior outside hitter Jacqueline Quade. Quade made a large impact on the offensive and defensive sides of the court, putting up a careerhigh 31 kills on 85 swings to go along with 15 digs. This was Quade’s 14th career double-double. “I think every first game of the year, it’s just exciting to get to play against someone other than ourselves,” Quade said. “Just coming out and seeing what the team is like now and (showing) people all that we’ve worked on in the preseason.” The first two sets were both only separated by two points, but Tennessee’s defense, led by senior middle blocker Alyssa Andreno and junior middle blocker Addisyn Rowe, made sure they didn’t let the Illini gain the lead. The Illini were facing a loss while down 18-16 in

the third set, but, behind a block late in the third by freshman middle blocker Kennedy Collins, the team was able to win the set and extend the match. Senior middle blocker Ashlyn Fleming discussed how the Illini overcame

to tie up the match at two sets each. The last set, which saw nine match points between the two teams, might have been the most intense of the night. The winning kill came from the 6-foot-4-inch Califor-

“Every first game of the year, it’s just exciting to get to play against someone other than ourselves.” JAQUELINE QUADE SENIOR OUTSIDE HITTER

the strong defense by the Volunteers. “I think with just being smart as we played and then just talking to one another it helps so much with our defense behind us. Telling us what’s open and what we can see, and that also just starts with the pass,” Fleming said. “We were passing really well tonight.” The second half of the fourth set belonged to the Illini. After a Tennessee challenge replay, Illinois went on an eightpoint run, led by Quade, to get up 17-11 on the Volunteers. Because of the run, the Illini were able

nia-native Fleming. Two freshmen made big impacts during their first game for the Illini. Collins and middle blocker Kyla Swanson both had multiple blocks and kills in crucial moments for the team, helping overcome the deficit. “It’s awesome,” Fleming said. “I think we all just love to see moments like that, and it’s just kind of exciting for the future because we know that we can all just compete and come in and work each day.” @brendyn_jones brendyn2@dailyillini.com

This week at a glance: TUESDAY

WEDNESDAY THURSDAY

None

FRIDAY Volleyball v. Washington at Big Ten/ Pac-12 Challenge in Iowa City, Iowa 4 p.m.

SATURDAY

Volleyball v. Colorado at Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge in Iowa City, Iowa 4 p.m.

Football at Conneticut 2:30 p.m.

2B Tuesday, September 3, 2019

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

GRADUATING THIS YEAR?

Get your SENIOR PICTURE taken for the 2020 YEARBOOK!

ILLIO SENIOR PORTRAITS R YOU O T O H P R HE E

September 9-28, 2019 Monday – Saturday 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.

Schedule your appointment at

illioyearbook.com/senior-pictures/

illio yearbook

OFFICIAL YEARBOOK AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS SINCE 1894

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

Tuesday, September 3, 2019

FOOTBALL

ILLINOIS VS. AKRON BY MILES POWERS-HUANG STAFF WRITER

After much anticipation, the 2019 Illinois football team finally took the field Saturday, hosting Akron. Although the competition wasn’t the most challenging, head coach Lovie Smith’s team took care of business in convincing fashion, rolling to a 42-3 victory. For the Illini offense, the execution wasn’t always spot-on, but the gap in talent proved too much for the Zips regardless. Defensively, Illinois completely shut down an albeit poor Akron offense, but the performance featured multiple standout individual performances nonetheless. @MilesP_H milesp2@dailyillini.com

Offense:

B+

A lead of 39 points is about as good a start as the Illini could have hoped for. Transfer quarterback Brandon Peters took care of the football, each of the Illini’s standout running backs got positive touches and the new additions at receiver made their mark. The offense came out of the gate humming, and Peters led them down the field on a 63-yard drive capped off by a 9-yard touchdown pass to senior tight end Justice Williams. “It was a good momentum swing,” Peters said. “Just to start off strong and get in the endzone, really prove a point that that’s what we’re gonna do all day.” It was a welcome sight for Smith to see Mike Epstein back on the field after an injury ended his 2018

season abruptly. The junior ran for 45 yards on 8 carries, but he did leave the game with an unspecified injury. “We’re a running football team,” Smith said. “Of course (for) Mike Epstein, it was good to get him back out there. We spread the ball around.” Elsewhere in the backfield, standout senior Reggie Corbin ran for 36 yards and a touchdown, but was removed after the first quarter due to picking up a minor injury, according to Smith. Junior Ra’Von Bonner added 38 yards and a touchdown, while Peters himself tallied 41 yards and an elusive touchdown run as the Illini ran for 219 yards and three touchdowns overall.

Defense:

A-

Giving up just three points and taking the ball away twice is about as good as it gets. For a unit that was among the worst in the country a season ago, it was a welcome sight. “Offense has played good football for (a) long period of time. Defense needed to step up, and I thought they did,” Smith said. “Not pleased with the first drive; (Akron) had a couple of big plays in there. After that first series, (we) took care of business, played the run well.” Junior Jake Hansen led the way with a forced fumble, a recovery, an interception, a half-sack and seven tackles. While the unit underperformed to say the least in 2018, Smith is a defensive-specialized coach and wanted to make forcing turnovers a priority when he took over as the team’s defensive coordinator this offseason. “That’s coach Smith ball right there,” Hansen said. “Getting after the ball and getting takeaways, that’s what

Brandon Peters: Peters covered the basics to be successful as a quarterback; he took care of the football, and he avoided sacks as best he could, taking just one. “That’s what we’ve seen from (Peters), under control, making good decisions,” Smith said. “I thought he made great decisions out there, timely runs also.” Indeed Peters was better than advertised in terms of rushing as he picked up chunk plays and even found the endzone, darting through the path his blockers opened

FOOTBALL

Illini lay foundation for great season BY TATIANA PERRY COLUMNIST

I hate to be that person, but are the Illini the best team in the country? I know, I know. That sounds completely ludicrous. All they did was defeat a lackluster MAC team, but they looked good doing it. I don’t think it’s too far of a leap to believe that they are better than Alabama and Clemson. Who cares about The Ohio State when Illinois is literally right here? You smell that? The sweet scent of the 2019 NCAA Championship? Too far? I agree. But the hope that a win like Saturday’s allows those things to be pondered rather than completely dismissed. The Illini started off pretty hot in the first half. “We knew we didn’t want it to be close,” Kendrick Green said. We have been talking about that all week, so we wanted to get points on the board pretty quickly.” Though after its initial rush of points in the first half, the team did their classic fizzle out in the second. The difference between then and now? Illinois didn’t

we pride ourselves on.” Southern California transfer Oluwole Betiku added 1.5 sacks, and he was not alone as Tymir Oliver, Owen Carney, Lere Oladipo and Ayo Shogbonyo also joined in on the sack parade. Additionally, Washington transfer linebacker Milo Eifler had a huge hit that caused Akron’s Michael Mathison to leave the game. “Talked a lot about Milo Eifler and the type of impact player he can be,” Smith said. “That’s about as good of a hit as you’ll see from a linebacker.” Though the season is far from over, the Illini had about as good a start as they could have hoped for. Next week, Illinois hits the road to take on Connecticut, which had one of the worst programs in the Football Bowl Subdivision a season ago.

give up points in the second half. And yes, I know, it was just Akron, but we still saw what it could be capable of for a tougher competitor. Giving up points in the back half was the ultimate downfall of the 2018 Illini. Even the team can admit: The defense was simply lacking. It wasoften confused and both literally and figuratively dropping the ball. “You look back at what we did wrong last year, we came together as a defense, the coaching staff came together and got us right as a defense,” said Ayo Shogbonyo. Now the guys are making hits they are proud of while being thirsty for more. When asked if his gameshaking hit in the third quarter was the best of his career, Milo Eifler responded: “Oh no, we still have 11 more games to play. ” This kind of confidence is what has been seriously missing. Oftentimes in the post-game conferences, the team talked about its confusion on the field that led to a lack of confidence in its game play (though it didn’t explicitly say it). After tying up some loose

ends and Hardy Nickerson leaving the team, defense development began to rapidly take place in the same fashion the offense made a turnaround in the previous year. And though the defensive side of the ball has much improvement, we can’t ignore that with yet another quarterback, the offense has continued to thrive. Brandon Peters went in trusting his offensive line and asked them to do the same in return. “He just told us ‘if you don’t see the ball, just keep blocking. I’m trying to make something happen,’” Green said. I realize some of the claims I opened with were quite ridiculous and there is still a way to go, but Saturday’s game allowed us to see a concrete foundation to build from. Last year, saying those wild claims would have been met with hysterical laughter. Now, merely a giggle. You know what that is? Growth. Or maybe Eifler said it better: “a new swagger for the team.” @tati_perry14 tp3@dailyillini.com

up for him from 20 yards out. While his timing with the receivers was not in harmony yet, he still tossed three touchdowns, including one to USC transfer Trevon Sidney. Sidney and fellow Trojan transfer Josh Imatorbhebhe totaled 60 yards receiving combined. Fall camp standout Daniel Barker also notched a touchdown reception, proving his strong camp performance was a sign of things to come.

FROM 1B

OPENER be a more balanced team,” Smith said. “Balance needs to start from the run. We know that from years past our passing game needs to get better, starting with QB. But now, we know we have a lot of options.” With 4:30 left on the clock in the third, a pass interference put the Illini offense on first and goal. A 2-yard completion from Peters to sophomore tight end Daniel Barker completed the possession and netted the Illini their sixth touchdown of the afternoon. “Barker had an outstanding training camp,” Smith said. “He can block, you can put him in line, and he can handle multiple defenses. His best football is ahead.” The teams both lost players within the next 30 seconds. On defense, sophomore free safety Kerby Joseph was ejected after officials determined he was targeting in the first half. In the following play, the Zips’ Michael Mathison went down after a hard tackle by Milo Eifler and was helped off the field. Akron had an opportunity to score for the first time since the first quarter, but missed the field

JONATHAN BONAGURO THE DAILY ILLINI

Illinois running back Reggie Corbin (2) and lineman Doug Kramer (65) celebrate after scoring a touchdown against Akron on Saturday. The Illini won 42-3.

goal attempt. It finished the third quarter down 42-3 to Illinois, as Illinois used its insurmountable lead to cruise during a scoreless fourth quarter that saw backup QB Matt Robinson make his Illini debut. With the win, the Illini kickstart their season 1-0 and come back to Memorial Stadium next Saturday for an afternoon match against Connecticut. Six Illini carried more than 25 yards (led by Mike Epstein’s 45), while the defense was sti-

fling across the board, featuring seven Illini securing at least 5 tackles. Peters finished his debut at QB with three touchdowns, 163 yards, and completed 14-23 attempts. “I’m gonna stop talking about last year too,” Smith said. “Now we have one game under our belt, and this is what we’re going to be judged by. We set the bar today.” @jaredefarmer jaredef2@dailyillini.com

4B Tuesday, September 3, 2019

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

Bailey Apartments

FU RN / LA UNF U UN DR RN YI A/ C NU NIT PA RK I UT NG O ILI NS TIE S I ITE NC L.

# BDROOMS

FU RN / LA UNF U UN DR RN YI A/ C NU NIT PA RK ING UT ON ILI S TIE S I ITE NC L.

Rental Quicklist # BDROOMS

MISC.

217-344-3008

www.baileyapartments.com

Green Street Realty

MISC.

217-356-8750

www.greenstrealty.com

1010 W. Springfield, U.

2,3,4

4 4

2.5 blocks to the Quad, Remodeled units available

901 S. Fourth, C.

2,3

F 4 4

111 S. Lincoln, U.

2,4

4 4

Near Lincoln and Green

108 E. Daniel, C.

2,3,4

4 4 4 4 Near the Quad, Full size Washer/Dryer!

911 W. Springfield, U.

4 4

Quiet building, office location

106 E. Armory, C.

2,3,4

4 4 4 4 Near the Quad, Balconies

505 S. First, C.

2,3,4

4 4 4 4 Balconies, Great Location

Burnham 310

217-239-2310

www.burnham310.com

4 Midway - Home of the Illini Inn; Prime Location

310 E. Springfield Ave.

1B/1B

4 4 4 4 Newly renovated, very spacious, pet friendly

201 W. Green, C.

1,2

4 4 4 4 Includes water & internet

310 E. Springfield Ave.

2B/2B

4 4 4 4 Close to campus, renovated amenities, open floor plan

213 W. Green, C.

1,2

4 4 4 4 Includes water & internet

310 E. Springfield Ave.

3B/3B

4 4 4 4 Near Engineering campus, 10ft ceilings, individual leases

501 E. University, C.

2,3

4 4 4 4 Close to Engineering

310 E. Springfield Ave.

Studio

44 4 4

204 S. Fifth, C.

2,3

4 4 4 4 Close to Engineering and bus lines

314 E. White, C.

2,3

4 4 4 4 Walking distance to County Market

509 S. Elm, C.

U/F 4 4 4 4 Quiet Location, Steps away from Campus

B 4 4 4 4

Green Street Realty

Next door to local grocery store, secure access, new flooring and appliances

217-356-8750

www.greenstrealty.com

809 W. Nevada, U.

3,4

55 E. Green, C.

1,2,3,4 F

104 E. John, C

1,2,4

4 4

4 Brand new, 4 bd - Echo show& $200 Giftcard

209 E. University, C.

Studio,1,2,4 F

4 4 4 4 Brand new, Fitness Center, Study Room

308 1/2 E. Clark, C.

4 4 4 4 Duplex with Rooftop Lounge

4 4 4 4 Brand New

F F

Brand new, Fitness Center, 3&4 bds - Echo show& $200 Giftcard!

Susan Linnemeyer 1005 W. Daniel St., C

217-359-9094 Driveway prkg, 5 min. from campus-2 bus lines, pet friendly, great for grads, $325

Prime Property Mgmt. Group 704 W. Illinois St., U.

520-881-8695

F 4

2 bth, dwn & upst kchnt & dng rm, stdy/rdng rm, prch, util area, wifi, neg. rnt, Av nw

Help to make well known of sudoku-topical.co You like this website? Then recommend it to yo If you own yourself a website, place a link to su If you print out the sudokus then print them twic Tell your acquaintances, friends and teammate Just help to make this site well known.!

WANT TO LIST YOUR PROPERTY?

CLASSIFIEDS THE DAILY ILLINI

11. Jun 2008

Help Wanted

Classified advertisers can now place print and online classified ads directly at:

Sign in to set up an account with us. Pricing is available on the site upon login. You can place ads in The Daily Illini print publications on Mondays and Thursdays, or on our dailyillini.com website, or both. 3

17 5

18 2

Read us online!

S P A D E

R U L E R

O R L Y

T E A L

S H E D

11. Jun 2008

L O M E

D R E A M O N

K A L E

F R A T

B A B Y B U M P S

S B A S T D I N A M A R O S A Y W I E S T S S A U F O X I C A P I T E N T S O T I P S A N D E G I N E O D E T O D R A P Y O

A T M O

I T G I R L S

C S I S

T A X E P I N R I N E I S H P S T O O A R M R T U P U E S S P E R N I H O L E O R O E D T L A S

O S I E R

217 - 337 - 8382

L A U R A

For more info or help placing your ad, contact us at: diclassifieds@Illinimedia.com

Part B

read us online dailyillini.com • dailyillini.com • dailyillini.com

@TheDailyIllini

8 9

and get headline news sent straight to your email!

S T R I P

Deadline: 11:00 a.m. one business day prior to publication

newsletter

www.dailyillini.com/classifieds

In addition to PAID ads for commercial businesses, we offer FREE ONLINE ads to UIUC students who sign into their accounts with “Illinois.edu” addresses.

Sudoku Skill: 13

Use the QR code below to

2 4

Our outstanding reputation is based on the Club’s commitment to excellence in our quality of services and the experiences we provide to our membership and guests.

If you have the desire and ability to provide great customer service while making a difference in an environment where people come to have funcome check us out. Both daytime and evening shifts available. Please apply in person. Applications are available in the Club office and on the Champaigncountryclub.com website.

4 3 9

Enter the numbers 1-9 in the blank spaces so that each row, column and 3x3 square contains only one of each number. There is only one solution. (solution in Classifieds and online at www.dailyillini.com).

15 1

11. Jun 2008

The Successful Employee: Positive attitude, outgoing personality, professional appearance, punctual, team player, friendly, energetic, desire to be rewarded for hard work, willingness to learn, and pride in performance.

dailyillini.com

Each team member contributes to our success. If you are looking for an opportunity to join an awesome team that prioritizes working hard while having fun, Champaign Country Club is THE place. WE OFFER- Competitive wages, meaningful benefits, approachable managers who care about your development, opportunity for advancement, flexible scheduling, free staff meals during shifts, golf benefits, and a great environment.

Servers, Bussers & Bartenders Now recruiting full and part time Servers, Bussers & Bartenders to join our TEAM.

Par

Part A

Challenge? 5

1 New8 York times 9 Crossword puzzle9 4 6 3 1 everday 6 3 in the

Daily Illini

6 6 7

43 8

1 57

9 8

8 2

9 5

1 8

5 5

6 3

ILLINI DRIVE

4 3

6 4

8 8

5 Skill:

1 are YOU Up4 tO the 1 8 7 3 5

8 5

EVERYTHING SPORTS. EVERYTHING ILLINI. TUNE IN TO 107.1 OR WPGU.COM WEEKDAYS 6PM-7PM

THE DAILY ILLINI | WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM

Tuesday, September 3, 2019

buzz calendar

Express your Virgo with an almost-perfect playlist

BY EMILY PEASE AND LIAM DWYER BUZZ CALENDAR EDITORS

Jam out to this indie music to channel back-to-school vibes

The buzz calendar is a compilation of events happening in the Champaign-Urbana area. Follow our top picks in Tuesday’s and Thursday’s papers for ideas on what to do on any night of the week, from where to eat to what to watch. Want to submit an event? Email calendar@readbuzz.com.

BY CASEY DALY STAFF WRITER

It’s Virgo season, which means it’s time to get centered and focus your energy on what really matters most in life. Virgos are analytical, intelligent and ultimately selfless. They’re also detail-oriented, logical and organized which are great traits to channel at the start of a new semester. They’re also great friends who always put others before themselves. Essentially, a Virgo represents everything we need more of in the world right now. If you’re vibing with Virgo season, then you’ll love the architecture of these wellthought-out songs. And if you’re a Virgo yourself, listen for a bit, then get back to saving the world.

 7 p.m.  Location TBD  Free Built By Girls will be hosting an internships 101 workshop to answer all your questions about career fair, the internship application process and how to network. This event will directly follow their second info session.  7-8:30 p.m.  Illini Union, 1401 W. Green St., Urbana  Free Come meet and do some improv with Hive Society and a whole bunch of other improv teams on campus.

• “Reckless Serenade,” Arctic Monkeys • “Horchata,” Vampire Weekend

8 to Create Info Night

 7 p.m.  Natural History Building, 1301 W. Green St., Urbana  Free 8 to Create is a nonprofit organization that promotes the local arts by hosting a live art show open to the public to observe, engage and participate in the creative process. It seeks to provide an opportunity for students to gain professional art and design experience and to engage in the Champaign-Urbana community. 8 to Create works to break down institutional and social hierarchies by bringing together a mix of artists from a variety of experiences and affiliations in one creative space.

• “Silhouettes,” Colony House • “Lazy Eye,” Silversun Pickups • “What You Know,” Two Door Cinema Club • “T-Shirt Weather,” Circa Waves

Virgo Season!

• “Come A Little Closer,” Cage The Elephant

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 4

• “Brazil,” Declan McKenna

Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring

• “Stream,” Last Dinosaurs • “Morocco,” Moon Taxi • “I Think Ur A Contra,” Vampire Weekend caseyd2@readbuzz.com

Internships 101

Improv Jam Session

• “1979,” The Smashing Pumpkins

• “Into The Mystic,” Van Morrison

TUESDAY, SEPT. 3

CASSIDY BRANDT THE DAILY ILLINI

 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.  Savoy 16 IMAX, 232 W. Burwash Ave., Savoy  $8 Director Peter Jackson’s landmark trilogy based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic fantasy novels is set in the mythological world of Middle Earth. A ring, lost for centuries, must be found and destroyed

to prevent the dark lord who created it from enslaving the world. The winner of 17 Academy Awards, including Best Picture with “The Return of the King,” this Lord of the Rings film will be presented on the big screen with additional footage not seen in the original theatrical versions.

Wild & Scenic Film Festival: Champaign

 6:30-9 p.m.  The Art Theater, 126 W. Church St., Champaign  $10 Prairie Rivers Network will again bring one of the largest environmental film festivals to Illinois. Now in its third year, the Wild & Scenic Film Festival focuses on films that speak to the environmental concerns and celebrations of our planet.

Writer’s Workshop: The Art of Writing Poetry

 6:30-8 p.m.  Champaign Public Library, 200 W. Green St., #5193, Champaign  $10 general admission, $5 students and seniors Join the Champaign Public Library for a hands-on generative workshop on poetry writing where participants will face those fears by looking at different types of poems and spend time getting those first drafts started. Please bring your preferred writing materials or technology. The workshop will be led by Jim O’Brien.

Junkyard Samurai at Canopy Club featuring Prob Cause and The Palmer Squares  8 p.m.-2 a.m.  The Canopy Club, 708 S. Goodwin Ave., Urbana  $10 Jay Goldberg Events & Entertainment, The Champaign Cypher Series, & Can I Kick It? present Junkyard Samurai. Junkyard Samurai is a collab between The Palmer Squares and ProbCause.

SEP 5-7, 2019 EllnoraGuitarFestival.com TOKO TELO • TIM DONALDSON • BOMBINO REVEREND ROBERT • SAMANTHA FISH LUTHER DICKINSON • JEFF PETERSON, GREG SARDINHA, TSUN-HUI HUNG • RACHEL ROSENKRANTZ • LADAMA • MOLLY TUTTLE STEVE DAWSON • KAKI KING • STEPHANE WREMBEL • PAT METHENY SIDE-EYE WITH JAMES FRANCIES AND MARCUS GILMORE THE MESSTHETICS • DANNY WEINKAUF AND THE RED PANTS BAND • BOKYUNG BYUN JASON VIEAUX • ROB ICKES AND TREY HENSLEY SÁVILA • ANAT COHEN AND MARCELLO GONÇALVES ARITMIA: MERIMA KLJUČO AND MIROSLAV TADIĆ DANILO BRITO QUARTET • THE BLUEBONNETS TONY MCMANUS AND JULIA TOASPERN • GUIDO SANCHEZ-PORTUGUEZ • RAFIQ BHATIA BUDDY GUY • BRANDON T. WASHINGTON & FRIENDS

buzz

TUESDAY

September 3, 2019 The Daily Illini DailyIllini.com

“Don’t exceed over 20 font size please! This is WhitneyCondensed Light.” BERCHAM KAMBER A COOL TITLE GOES HERE

MARK CAPAPAS THE DAILY ILLINI

Radio equipment sits over the desk inside the WPGU studio. WPGU hosts a variety of segments in its in-house studio on WPGU 107.1, including buzz’s radio talk show, “What’s the buzz” returning this semester.

Radio show shares buzz with listeners BY CAROLINA GARIBAY STAFF WRITER

We’re back! “What’s the buzz,” a radio show hosted by buzz staff, is returning to your airwaves for yet another semester starting this week, and we have a lot of buzz to share with you. As the Radio Content Editor for “What’s the buzz,” I am just one of the buzz voices you’ll be hearing on the radio this year. I had such a great time

working on this show last year, and I am buzzing with excitement — ha, get it? — to be back with the incredible team for another semester of “What’s the buzz.” So, what exactly is “What’s the buzz”? Featuring several of our talented buzz writers and editors, “What’s the buzz” is a weekly radio talk show on WPGU 107.1 where we talk about hot takes, global happenings and, our favorite topic, the Champaign-

Urbana social and music scene. “What’s the buzz” was introduced by former buzz editor Elani Kaufman, and since presenting our first show in February, the “What’s the buzz” team has developed, written and presented exciting content for over 10 shows. A few of last semester’s global talking points included the Oscars, our picks for the most anticipated movie and music releas-

es of 2019 and “Drag Race.” We also discussed plenty of local topics, such as different C-U house venues to check out for those interested in live music, Spring Jam 2019, the Boneyard Arts Festival, Ebertfest and so much more. We even had a few student guests on our show talk about their involvement in “Footloose,” which was presented by Illini Student Musicals last semester. If you’re planning on tun-

ing in this semester, you can expect updates on local shows to check out, our summer music recap and a look into the annual Pygmalion Festival, which is coming to C-U this month. If our content isn’t enough to get you to tune in, then our music should do it. We compile new playlists for every show, featuring songs chosen by our “What’s the buzz” team. If you ever miss a show, you can check out our playlists

for each show on our Spotify, @buzzmagcu. The “What’s the buzz” team can’t wait to be back on air this semester to share more fresh and exciting content with our listeners. If you haven’t tuned in yet, we hope you’ll give us a listen and check us out. So, what’s the buzz? Join us every Wednesday from 7-9 p.m. on WPGU 107.1 to find out. garibay5@readbuzz.com

Clairo’s first full-length album is not immune to criticism BY NILLY KUMAR STAFF WRITER

buzz factor: Top Tracks: “Bags”, “Sofia”

“North”,

The speed at which Clairo became an indie rock sensation upset a lot of people in the music scene. In the months following the release of her viral track “Pretty Girl” on YouTube in 2017, Claire Cottrill became a punching bag for music enthusiasts who argued her sound is one-note and wispy, the references to her bisexuality are hollow panders to progressive critics and the LGBT community and her familial ties to the music industry means she hasn’t earned her place as an organic indie rock star. As a result, there was a lot riding on “Immunity,” Cottrill’s first fulllength album; released on August 2, it was her opportunity to prove her worth in producing truly sincere and heartfelt music and her shot to shake off the phrase “industry plant” from the Google search results of

her name. And to that, “Immunity,” for the most part, exists as a mixed bag of fulfilled expectations and slightly disappointing additions. While the record has its shining moments, much of it falls flat. The record opens with “Alewife,” a soft ballad that tells a story set in suburban Massachusetts of someone who was pulled from the edge of self-harm by somebody close to them, which begins and ends with a soft piano and Cottrill’s breezy vocals. While the song sets the tone for and eases the listener into the rest of the album, the song itself doesn’t present much in the way of vocals or instrumentation to leave a lasting impression, despite its striking and personal lyrics. “Closer To You” is the first track on the album to earn noticeable attention from listeners online. It’s the album’s attempt at an angrily moody song, full of synth baselines and autotuned vocals. It feels out of character in sound, theme and lyrics with a structure that feels sloppy, like

a sequence of moody verses slammed into each other. Almost all of the album after its most overrated track, “Sofia,” tends to get soaked into itself. The vocals often resign to being too low to make an impression and are laid together with very standard and equally soft instrumentation. “Feel Something,” one of these later songs, is the album’s attempt to mimic a generic billboard hit, complete with a drawn-out and unmemorable chorus that feels like it was designed to stick in your head after listening to it on the car radio. The lyrics are hollow and emotionally simplistic, and the echoing kickdrums and swooshing claps feel overproduced. The main thing the record has to offer is its shining gems that echo to what Clairo captured when she wrote “Pretty Girl.” The album reaches its peak in its center with a sequence of beautifully written songs starting with “North,” which is by far the strongest and most underrated track in the record. Its hauntingly

resigned refrain of “Maybe I should just go up north,” coupled with a fading grungy guitar, is easily the most powerful part of the album. “Bags,” which follows, is equally impressive with piercing lo-fi pianos, acoustic guitar chords and Cottrill’s breezy voice describing in detail the moments of being with someone and watching something neither of you is interested in when it’s clear that both of you are only thinking of each other. “Can you see me doing everything to hold back? I guess this could be worse/Walking out the door with your bags,” she sings, knowing that even that eternal limbo of being so close yet far apart is better than doing something someone wasn’t asking for and ruining your night and your relationship. “Bags” is brilliant in how it can be so specific yet so elucidating of an increasingly integral crossroads in young relationships. “Immunity,” more than anything, shows that Clairo’s future as a songwriter and musician is promising. With her heartfelt and per-

KENYON EDMOND THE DAILY ILLINI

Clairo performs in Union Park for Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago on July 21. Her full-length album, “Immunity,” was released Aug. 2 and serves as a solid foundation for her career.

sonal lyrics with suburban themes and the euphoric energy of her instrumentation, she creates an album more than worth listening to despite some of its dull parts. “Immunity” won’t be

the record that makes her career, but it will be the one that shows that there is a lot to expect and be excited for from Claire Cottrill. nskumar@readbuzz.com

CHAMPAIGN’S ALTERNATIVE

LIVE STREAM AT WPGU.COM